Clarification from the agency

This position is open to current Permanent employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Eligible applicants will be referred in the following order: 1) Current permanent employees of the Prescott VHA 2) Current Permanent employees of the VHA 3) All other eligible applicants

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Major Duties:

• Serves as the alter ego and second-in-command for the Field Chief and fully shares the authorities and responsibilities of the Field Chief.
• Provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for multiple organizational units within the service line, ensuring alignment with enterprise objectives and directives from senior leadership.
• Evaluates management practices across the service line to ensure consistency, equity, and compliance with regulatory and organizational requirements.
• Reviews and approves recommendations for staffing actions-including selections, promotions, details, and reassignments-ensuring decisions support workforce planning and succession strategies.
• Establishes service line performance benchmarks and ensures subordinate leaders effectively communicate expectations, monitor progress, and provide constructive feedback to their teams.
• Oversees performance management processes for subordinate managers, ensuring fair and consistent application of rating methodologies across the service line.
• Approves or recommends awards, pay actions, and recognition programs within delegated authority to reinforce high performance and employee engagement.
• Serves as the escalation point for complex employee relations issues, providing guidance on corrective actions and reviewing proposed disciplinary measures for compliance and appropriateness.
• Collaborates with senior leadership on unresolved matters requiring higher-level intervention.
• Identifies service line training and development needs, ensuring managers facilitate opportunities that enhance workforce capability and readiness.
• Oversees leave administration and staffing plans to maintain operational coverage during peak periods and holidays.
• Champions a positive, inclusive work environment that adheres to Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) principles and fosters employee engagement. Monitors organizational climate, proactively addressing systemic issues and promoting workplace safety and well-being.
• Conducts periodic reviews of organizational structure, position descriptions, and resource allocation to optimize efficiency and ensure alignment with mission objectives.
• Demonstrates commitment to continuous improvement and operational excellence through data-driven decision-making and collaboration with senior leadership.
• Oversees investigative and enforcement activities, ensuring subordinate managers and supervisors execute responsibilities related to crime prevention, emergency response, and apprehension of offenders in accordance with Title 38, U.S.C., Sections 901 and 902. Establishes standards for conducting investigations, serving warrants, and managing evidence to ensure compliance with legal and procedural requirements.
• Provides guidance on complex or multi-jurisdictional cases and coordinates with external law enforcement agencies to resolve high-risk incidents.
• Reviews and approves investigative reports, ensuring accuracy, adherence to evidentiary standards, and alignment with organizational objectives.
• Directs systemic compliance reviews and monitors corrective actions to address violations of laws, regulations, and policies.
• Ensures investigative findings are documented and communicated appropriately to inform administrative decisions and risk mitigation strategies.
• Provides executive leadership and strategic oversight for crisis intervention programs within the service line, ensuring effective multidisciplinary responses to Veterans experiencing mental health crises.
• Establishes policies and operational frameworks that guide subordinate managers and supervisors in implementing advanced deescalation strategies and leveraging VA resources to achieve optimal outcomes for Veterans in crisis.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm
Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Supervisory Law Enforcement Specialist/PD00252A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. This position requires the application, assessment, and questionnaire to be fully completed. The assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. This position requires the application, assessment, and questionnaire to be fully completed. The assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/07/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.


You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:
  • Assisting in the development of local policies and implementing corrective procedures to alleviate identified physical security problems,
  • Making recommendations concerning law enforcement and physical security to the VHA.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Conflict Management
• Criminal Law
• Influencing/Negotiating
• Lead or Supervise
• Manages Resources
• Partnering
• Planning and Evaluating
• Public Safety and Security

Supervisory Situational Judgment Test. Applicants will be required to complete a Supervisory Situational Judgment Test (SSJT) as part of the assessment process for this position. The SSJT evaluates judgment and decision-making skills that align with relevant competencies, organizational values, and best practices. Assessment results may be used as part of the evaluation, ranking and referral process. This is not a timed test, however, the assessment is expected to take approximately 45 minutes or less to complete. The assessment for this application does not include a cut score for a minimum level of required proficiency in these critical general competencies. However, you must answer each item in the assessment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting
documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all
assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for
this position:
Conflict Management
Influencing/Negotiating
Manages Resources
Partnering
Planning and Evaluating
Lead and Supervise
Criminal Law
Public Safety and Security

Supervisory Situational Judgment Test. Applicants will be required to complete a Supervisory
Situational Judgment Test (SSJT) as part of the assessment process for this position. The SSJT
evaluates judgment and decision-making skills that align with relevant competencies,
organizational values, and best practices. Assessment results may be used as part of the
evaluation, ranking and referral process. This is not a timed test, however, the assessment is
expected to take approximately 45 minutes or less to complete. The assessment for this
application does not include a cut score for a minimum level of required proficiency in these
critical general competencies. However, you must answer each item in the assessment.???????